The Netherlands has a tradition of spatial foresight. People look back with pride – sometimes a little too nostalgically – on the Second Memorandum, Nederland Nu als Ontwerp (The Netherlands Now as a Design) and the National Planning Agency. Over the past twenty years, we have lost sight of this tradition somewhat, with attention shifting to the market and local considerations. Area development became more attractive than spatial planning.
But the tide is turning: space is scarce and the long-term challenges are immense, ranging from a changing climate and energy system to a demographic transition. This raises the question: can we still do it? Can we still look far ahead in a methodically robust way? And can we do so without completely ascending into the future? Can urban planning and urban design find common ground again, based on the conviction that a good story and a strong design reinforce each other? Based on the diagnosis that spatial visualisations must also be complemented by institutional imagination and implementation?
The BNSP is organising a series of meetings on this topic. The kick-off is on 12 December in collaboration with the Urbanism Department of Delft University of Technology and JongBNSP. The case study? The most discussed spatial document in years: the draft Spatial Planning Policy Document.